Season gets off to winning start. Two Audi R8 LMSs gave their all in the 12 hour race at Mount Panorama in Bathurst in Australia - and were rewarded with a double victory. BILSTEIN MDS shock absorbers gave the victors the winning edge around the 6,213 kilometer up and downhill track. The Audi R8 LMS with Marc Basseng, Christopher Mies and Darryl O’Young (D/D/CN) at the wheel was a nose ahead in Bathurst - despite this being their first race there. Following an exciting race, a lead of just 0.7 seconds put them ahead of their Audi team mates and local heroes Mark Eddy, Craig Lowndes and Warren Luff who came second, also in an Audi R8. Casually, the Bathurst newcomers headed by Marc Basseng set a new lap number record, completing 292 laps. Audi has relied exclusively upon BILSTEIN technology from the outset of the R8 LMS project. BILSTEIN's Modular Damping System (MDS) combines roughly 50 years of motor sport know-how, forming the platform for a wide range of high-performance shock absorbers for professional racing.

"Unbelievable! That was my first victory in an Audi in a 12 hour long-distance race. The car was perfect. Such a narrow call within one team - it's incredible how close we were. I'm just really happy," said the winning racing pilot Marc Basseng after the race. The race track in Bathurst was new to him, but he was more than familiar with the Audi R8 LMS with BILSTEIN shock absorbers from numerous successful events at the Nürburgring race track.

In the qualifiers, the Audis took the double pole position which they then managed to defend against the third placed Porsche in the race itself. The double success down under is also the 65th victory for the Audi R8 LMS, which is still only two years into its racing career.